To most of us, the Supreme Court is this somewhat amorphous entity that makes important decisions, but rarely seems to affect our everyday lives. That's the perception anyway. For this coming Fall term, though, the court has picked up a couple of cases that will be felt almost immediately. The first comes in a case out of Indiana where a new law requires you to show a photo ID in order to vote. With a presidential election coming next year, the decision could change the way states handle polling. There's another case out of Kentucky that, by one report, is the first time the Court will hear a challenge to an execution method since 1879. The justices will decide if the so-called cocktail administered in lethal injection executions amounts to cruel and unusual punishment. David Savage will have all the details on what's coming up this term, and how it might affect you (feel free to post your questions). And, Jeffrey Rosen will talk a little about the makeup of this court, and what it might mean in terms of the opinions.

You mean, you wouldn't want to take her everywhere?

Source: BarrieJH

It's true, Sarah and I will take any opportunity to promote our kitties on the blog. We are shameless kitty promoters -- of Winston and Audrey, particularly. Sarah, in fact, walks Win on a leash, which I only wish I could make Audrey do. Unfortunately, Audrey is a) terrified of anything outside of my apartment (and a few things in it), and b) incredibly fuzzy, and I would be nervous that someone's throat would close up at the sight of her. And that, my friends, is the subject of Ask Amy today. Brit and Paris have started a few very-rude trends (remember when Britney simply could not remember her drawers?*), but the most pervasive isn't the underpants, and, er... jail, it's the Tiny Dog in Bag phenomenon (TDB). Bringing Muffy** and Tinkerbell to the store is now ubiquitous, and people are getting pretty steamed about it. What do you think? Should Fluffy be in Saks? Or the frozen food aisle? Is it rude, or just irritating?

*Nothing SFW I can link to. Or SFMM (my Mother), which is an even higher bar. Thanks, Mom!

**Muffy, to my knowledge, is not one of Britney's dogs names.

***CAN YOU BELIEVE SHE HAS A WIKIPEDIA ENTRY!?!?!!?

We'll talk with Nicole Hollander in the second hour today. You might know her from the Sylvia comic strip, or her comedy shows. This time, she's talking about her new book, Tales of Graceful Aging from the Planet Denial. A book that has her doing media interviews all over the country. And she was nice enough to do a little guest blogging for us:

What's surprising to me about being on a book tour, since I've never been on one before, is that my cartoon strip Syliva is easier to do. My sciatic nerve is acting up, my house is a mess, I'm stressed and yet ideas for my cartoon strip come pouring out. I just have to stop and write them down. Is stress a cure for writer's block? Maybe I should subject myself to more stress, like showing up at an airport during a snow storm, carrying a large bottle of contact lens fluid and a swiss army knife in my carry on luggage. Or watch a marathon of CSI Miami, CSI New York, Law & Order, and Cold Case and Criminal Minds while drinking huge amounts of coffee and chocolate doughnuts. Surely something would give?

-Nicole Hollander

What are your stories of graceful... or not so graceful... aging? If 60 is the new 40, when do we get to be old and just relax?

Carbon offsets are super-buzzy these days as green gets less gross and more (I just can't say groovy, I'm sorry) hot. Everybody's doing it (well, those who can afford it) -- paying to have the carbon they produce, often via air travel, offset by something that reduces carbon by an equal amount. In more concrete terms, the money goes to purchase windmills or plant trees... To me, it sounds a little bit green, and a little bit like throwing money at a problem to assuage your guilt. Stanford research fellow and author Peter Schweizer wondered, why stop at carbon? Pollution's a big problem, but it's not the only thing we do wrong. Me, I'm a speeder. That's bad. So according to Schweizer, to offset my sins maybe I should be giving money to schools to help pay for crossing guards or to communities for speed bumps or cameras. I'm also a pretty serious sugar-addict... but I think my dentist is more than compensated for that. What do you need to offset, and how would you do it?

For our last show of the week... oh my, and for the month of September (time. it does fly) here is what we're working on today:

Next Monday is considered to be "first Monday" in the Supreme Court world. The first Monday in October marks the start of the court's new term. Los Angeles Times Supreme Court reporter David Savage will give us a sneak preview on some upcoming cases, including voter IDs, the lethal injection debate, and others. Following that topic, we're going to ask the women a question. Do you tuck your dog in your handbag as your personal travel accessory? Chicago Tribune's syndicated columnist Ask Amy's" Amy Dickinson has received a lot of letters about this growing trend. At this rate, we may need to go from referring to dogs as 'man's best friend' to 'girl's best shopping buddy.' Paris Hilton, anyone?

In our second hour, Nicole Hollander joins us. She is the creator of the comic strip Sylvia and has written a new book entitled, Tales of Graceful Aging from the Planet Denial. She puts a much needed humorous spin on getting older, and according to the title of her first entry, "the sixties are your most creative years." After that, Peter Schweizer of the Hoover Institution at Stanford University will suggest ways we can offset away our guilt. According to his op-ed that appeared in USA Today, moral offsets can be applied to all areas of our lives that we would otherwise like to erase.

Anthony Brooks will be with us all next week. Enjoy today's program!

Did I really hear Hillary Clinton refuse to answer a question last night about which team she'd root for in a hypothetical World Series? I'm a fairly impartial person, but not when it comes to the Cubs. And Hillary grew up in the Chicago suburbs, she's a North-sider. Of course she'd root for the Cubs. Wouldn't she?

RUSSERT: Senator Clinton, what about a World Series - Yankees and Cubs? CLINTON: Well, you know, I've worried about that because I think, given the Cubs' record, which of course, I hope it happens, but it could very well be a sign of the coming apocalypse, were that to ever occur. It would be so out of history that you would have the Cubs versus the Yanks. Then I'd be really in trouble. RUSSERT: But who would you be for? CLINTON: Well, I would probably have to alternate sides.

OK, I see a political argument for not talking about specifics on Iraq, or taxes, or other policy issues. But, is there a politically expedient reason to not have a favorite baseball team? Thinking like a Cubs fan, maybe the safe route is to go with the Cubbies on this one. There's a lot of sympathy for the team, it has been about a hundred years since they've won a World Series. Who couldn't get behind an underdog like that? Then again, Cubs fans are used to disappointment (and I don't say that happily), while Yankees fans expect to win. In that case, if Hillary backs the Yanks, Cubs fans might be more likely to forgive and forget (and wait till next year). Yankee fans might not only NOT vote for her for President, but impeach her from the senate, too. In the end, though, does it matter? Can a candidate for president really not get behind a team for fear of losing votes?

For years, gang violence has been a major problem in American prisons. Now, it seems, religious radicalism is a growing concern. To curb it, The Bureau of Prisons began the Standardized Chapel Library Project. With the help of several religious scholars, whose names haven't been made public, the Bureau determined what religious texts prison chapel libraries can carry. Laurie Goodstein, who covers religion for The New York Times, got her hands on the official list. "There are nine titles by C.S. Lewis," she writes. "And none from the theologians Reinhol Niebuhr, Karl Barth and Cardinal Avery Dulles, and the influential pastor Robert H. Schuller." Inmates and advocates were outraged. In response to mounting criticism, the Bureau of Prisons announced that it has decided "to alter its planned course of action with respect to the Chapel Library Project." According to a spokeswoman, "The Bureau will begin immediately to return to chapel libraries materials that were removed in June 2007, with the exception of any publications that have been found to be inappropriate, such as material that could be radicalizing or incite violence. The review of all materials in chapel libraries will be completed by the end of January 2008." In the first hour, we'll talk about the motivations behind this controversial program: religious radicalism in America's prison system. Is it a problem? Should the government be more worried about it?

It's Junkie Day here at TOTN, in a political sense. And there's plenty to talk about. Democrats debate tonight at Dartmouth... Republicans (those who agreed to show up, anyway) face off at Morgan State University tomorrow night. But, it's the five candidates who aren't coming that are getting all the attention this week. None of the top contenders plan to be there... No McCain, Giuliani, Romney. And no Thompson or Tancredo, either. Is this a Republican snub of black voters? Or just a scheduling conflict? We'll talk with Armstrong Williams about it. Larry Craig is back in court today, trying to take back that guilty plea... and trying to save what's left of his career in the senate. Ken Rudin will be here to answer all your questions (just don't bring up the Yankees loss).

You may know Bill Littlefield from his NPR show, Only a Game. Or maybe you remember the bazillions of appearances he's made on other NPR programs. Or maybe you just know* Bill Littlefield. Bill knows two things insanely well: sports and writing. His name may be primarily associated with baseball, but Bill covers it all, from horse-racing to golf, and writes about it with enviable elan. He's a poet, a reporter, and a wry observer of the human condition... and he pulls it all together in his new book, Only A Game. What's your favorite Bill Littlefield production?

*Our guest host, Anthony Brooks, does!

There was a time when I disdained Starbucks*. In fact, those feelings still pop-up now and then when I'm stuck using some ridiculous combination of words ("iced venti doppio," ugh), when I really just want two shots of espresso in a large cup. But it's hard not to admire the company -- all that venti shmenti business notwithstanding. They sell a remarkably consistent product, and in most Starbucks, the service is friendly and fast. Their ubiquitousness has been bad for my favorite Mom and Pop coffee shops, and good for folks looking for a quick visit to a ladies room. 'Bucks has been particularly good to Michael Gates Gill, author of How Starbucks Saved My Life. The son of the late New York Times critic Brendan Gill, he grew up around snooty coffee types (he once petted John Updike's hair). But years later, he found himself out of a job, a relationship, and worst of all -- health insurance. When a Starbucks manager offered him a job, he took it (and the health insurance the company offers), and turned his life around. (While he tours with the book, he's still planning on working one day a week! One wonders what will happen when the movie comes out?!) Mike Gill will be here to take your questions... and possibly your orders.

*Not to be confused with Starbuck of BSG fame, whom I completely adore. Though the show and the shop have some weird nomenclature stuff in common. Can you order an iced Viper, I wonder?

We start our program today with a discussion about religion in the prison system. Terrorism experts fear that American prisons galvanize some inmates who convert to radical Islam and other extreme religions views that promote acts of violence. As a result, the federal Bureau of Prisons ordered prison chapel libraries to remove all religious books, videos, CDs and tapes that are not included on an approved list of materials... and have since modified that order to only remove those publications "found to be inappropriate, such as material that could be radicalizing or to incite violence." But is the move unconstitutional? Unethical? How serious is the threat of religion in prisons? Following that conversation, we go inside the world of politics. Our own political junkie Ken Rudin and republican media pundit Armstrong Williams talk about tomorrow's republican debate scheduled to take place on the campus of an African-American university... to which a number of candidates have decided to pull a no-show.

In our second hour, Bill Littlefield, author and host of NPR's sports show Only a Game, talks about how sports can actually tell a story about the human experience. In his new book, also entitled Only a Game, Littlefield explains why we must remain calm when it comes to watching sports, talking about sports, or playing a sport. Whether you win or lose, remember... it's only a game. Following that, author Mike Gill talks about how Starbucks saved his life. Apparently you can find happiness working in the darnedest places. Good thing there is a Starbucks on practically every corner!!!

Owen Wilson's breakdown has been tabloid-fodder for weeks now, but it never felt like a grocery-aisle story to me. First, there are the details of the actual incident and Wilson's subsequent hospitalization, which remain -- appropriately -- guarded. From what I've gathered, his family and friends rushed to his side, and after a period of staying indoors and healing, Wilson has started to venture out. These few details are so much more mundane than tales of it-girl boozing/car-crashing/rehabbing cycles, and somehow more affecting, to me anyway. But that may be because Owen Wilson has been such a fixture in my life. I'll never forget seeing his first film, Bottle Rocket. The movie was passed around like a secret, and his character, Dignan, got to jaded college-me and cajoled his way into my psyche, reminding me that dreaming big is key to living. Around that same time a good friend of mine developed a massive celebrity crush on him, and Owen, as we know him, is someone with whom we've long been on a first-name basis without actually knowing. Since the days of Bottle Rocket, we've been with him throughout, in spite of "Butterscotch Stallion" allegations and it-couple dalliances... to us, he's still Dignan. It has long seemed the characters he plays are really all just Owen, with Dignan's pie-in-the-sky optimism tempered by Eli Cash's self-destructive impulses. All this is to say if you love Wilson's movies, particularly those he's made with Wes Anderson, John Seabrook's profile of these "Wonder Boys" for Men's Vogue is a must-read. Dig in, and root for Dignan.

The anniversary of the integration of Central High in Little Rock, Arkansas marks one milestone at the end of this country's struggle to end legal segregation. The next step -- real integration -- is taking longer than civil rights leaders might hoped. Today, we're talking about the value of racial diversity... in your professional lives, in your personal lives, in your community. We're talking to some really interesting people -- a historian who studies diversity in housing, and a teacher who edited a collection of essays about interracial friendships. (I urge you to read this essay of hers -- it's beautifully written, and will definitely give you something to think about.) Talk of the Nation is a veritable rainbow of folks -- black, white, Jewish (yours truly, oy), Latino, and at least two people with really great accents (Boston and Jamaican). I think it enriches my life, my relationships, and of course, unarguably, the show. It makes our editorial conversations richer, and our parties way more fun.

When we were in Detroit over the summer, there were already rumblings of how important the UAW negotiations would be. The car makers have to cut costs to survive, thanks to the competition from Asian companies like Toyota and Honda. On the other side of the table sit the union workers... hardworking people with families and mortgages and multiple generations in the auto plants. Keeping the two sides apart, of course, are issues like health care, pensions, pay, and job security. Intractable to say the least. Still, the strike took most people by surprise (including many of the workers now on strike). Analysts seem to think it will be a short strike, and for the most part workers say they hope to be back at work soon. We must have some of the striking workers, or their family members, in our audience. How long do you think the strike will last, and will it do any good?

For most of us who try it, learning another language is a long, frustrating process. In middle school, I made stacks of flash cards to memorize Spanish vocabulary. My friends and I affected accents for class presentations and humiliating skits. And I dutifully conjugated verbs into the present perfect, the future perfect, the past perfect, and the imperfect. By the time I left for college, I was upset that all my hard work hadn't rendered me fluent. A few years later, I spent a semester in Bolivia. (Finally, a chance to put my Spanish to good use!). For weeks, almost every conversation was tedious. What tense is she using? What is the word for that? I must sound really stupid. (In retrospect, I'm sure I did). My host sister, Mariana, would roll her eyes at every malapropism. "That's so gringo," she'd say -- in English, to add further insult to injury. I swallowed my pride. I took solace in David Sedaris' stories of ex-pat life. And things got better. Eventually. Today, in the second hour, we'll talk to the editor of a new book, How I Learned English. If English is your second language, how did you learn it? Can you remember that moment when you finally felt fluent?

When I first started seeing my boyfriend, I frequently texted him instead of calling. The phone can be nerve-wracking when you're in a new relationship, and a text feels so much less invasive when you're communicating with someone whose schedule and routines you're unfamiliar with. Right? Well, at least that's how I rationalized my preference for the written word. Not so the boyfriend... He asked my why I did it, and (nicely) called texting the "lowest form of communication." Oops. He's not wrong -- his "lowest form" -- meaning least-committal and least-emotional -- was my least-interruptive and least-demanding. Reporter Natalie Y. Moore had an entire relationship over text, and after its demise, she analyzed the role of texting in relationships here and abroad. Moore discovered the Philippines is the most-texting country in the world. They've got informal rules and standards, and she thinks we need them too. What do you think? Are there inappropriate uses of text-messaging? Have you ever sent one to the wrong recipient? And what about the drunk-text: endearing, or annoying?

Yesterday, our first hour discussion tackled some of the reasons why parents of black and white students choose segregated schools for their children. Today our show pendulum swings in the direction of integration. Fifty years ago today, nine black students attended their first full day of classes at the previously all-white Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas. But in the present day, has that historical moment lead to greater racial integration in your life? Just how important is racial diversity to you at work, in your neighborhood, in social circles? And do you feel economic class makes segregation unavoidable? Following that, we'll talk about the United Auto Workers' strike with New York Times writer Micheline Maynard.

I have often heard it said that English is one of the hardest languages to learn... and I can see their point. The letter 'e' can completely change the meaning of a word and alter its pronunciation (think 'man' and 'mane'). And don't get me started on the 'i' before 'e' rule. This may call for some creative intervention. Tom Miller is the editor of "How I learned English," a collection of essays from prominent Latino Americans about ways they mastered the English language. And Congressman Jose Serrano will join us. He wrote an essay called, "Learning English by the Sinatra Method." Yes, THE Frank Sinatra. No doubt Congressman Serrano may have mastered the language of crooning as well. Following that, we'll talk to Chicago Public Radio reporter Natalie Y. Moore who believes that while text messaging may be great for getting to know one another, it could actually kill romance. And we'll read from your letters and blog comments about sex offender registries, the Israel Lobby and U.S. foreign policy, and things lost...and found.

Tasers have been on my mind lately; on the train the other day a woman was shrieking into her cell phone while the guy across the aisle blasted his iPod so loud I was subconsciously humming along to Journey. Oh, if only I had a Taser! And before you accuse me of being some sort of sadist or lacking humanity, let me pass the buck on to Rex Huppke. I blame his op-ed in the Chicago Tribune over the weekend for putting me in the mood to Tase (is that a word?).

I have a confession to make: When I saw a group of campus cops in Florida take a Taser to a vociferous 21-year-old student who was spouting off at a John Kerry Forum, I smiled.
I smiled a broad, uninhibited smile, one free from the constraints of political correctness and common human decency. And then I thought, "Hah! That mouthy, self-righteous twit had it comin'."
It was then I realized that, when it comes to certain people, I'm unabashedly pro-Tasering. And before you judge me, look inward. There's bound to be one person in your life, or at least someone in the news, who you'd love to see Tasered.
Maybe it's that relentless suck-up co-worker everyone gripes about. ZAP!
Or, perhaps, Kevin Federline. ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP!

Rex indulges his "inner mean streak" and comes up with some other good ideas on who'd he Taser at the Trib's site. And come on now, if we put aside all our righteous indignation for a few minutes, and realize that we're not talking about really hurting anyone, this could be a therapeutic (read: fun) exercise... There must be SOMEONE you think deserves a 50,000-volt wake up call?

By now, you may have heard of a little town in Louisiana called Jena. You may know it's pronounced GEE-nuh, and that there was an incident there involving high school students, race, and nooses hung from a schoolyard tree. But did you know that the beating in question took place almost a year ago? That the nooses went up long before that, last August? Black bloggers were all over the story nearly from the get-go thanks to a Chicago Tribune article by Howard Witt, but it took a VERY long time for the mainstream media to pick up on the story. Kind of reminds me of another long-ignored case of African American high school students facing charges... that of Genarlow Wilson (not to mention Shaquanda Cotton, another of Witt's subjects). Are the stories truly comparable? And if so, what does that say about the cases and the coverage?

So, cartoons are clearly op-eds, as we've said before. And today, our op-ed is courtesy of Hector Cantu -- no thanks to Ken Burns. Burns' new World War II series The War has drawn complaints because it doesn't tell the stories of Latinos in the war -- Cantu decided that if Burns wasn't going to do it, he'd tell them in his comic strip Baldo. He's added a character -- a World War II vet -- named Benito "Benny" Ramirez, who's telling his stories of the war. Benny started his story on Monday, and he's continued it throughout last week and this one. Today, we'll talk to Hector Cantu about Benny, and hope that you'll post your stories here as well.

We've heard a lot today about the 50th anniversary of the desegregation of Central High School in Little Rock. Nine students were escorted by federal troops past an angry mob of white students and parents, after the Supreme Court decision in Brown v. Board of Education. Integration was the goal, but still many parents of all races choose segregation... not out of overt racism, but in an effort to find the best schools. We'll talk about choosing segregation on the show today. If you're a parent, or teacher, or a student... does integration factor into your decision on what school to attend? Is there a benefit to going to school with other students who like like you?

Last week we brought you Andrew Arulanandam. (Say that three times fast!) Today we welcome Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, NATO Secretary General, long-distance runner, and devoted husband [of Jeannine de Hoop Scheffer-van Oorschot]. (Our guest host, Anthony Brooks, spent most of the morning perfecting his pronunciation of the Secretary's Dutch name.) De Hoop Scheffer will join us to talk about NATO, its role in Afghanistan, and the Russia-NATO Council. Maybe we can get him to talk about the time he got Punk'd, too!

Happy Monday! Neal Conan is off on a much needed vacation (in an undisclosed location) and filling in as guest host for the week is longtime NPR veteran reporter Anthony Brooks. We're happy to have him. Now let's get down to business. Here is what's shaking for today:

A half century after the Brown vs.The Board of Education ruling began an era of equal educational opportunities across racial lines, parents of both black and white students are choosing segregated schools for their children. In our first hour we'll talk about the reasons why some parents make that choice. Later in that hour, we'll talk with cartoonist Hector Kantu, co-creator and writer of the syndicated Baldo comic strip, about why he feels Ken Burns' The War series falls short in telling the story of the role of Latinos in World War Two.

In our second hour, we'll discuss how the mainstream media covers race. The Jena Six continue to make national news, but it took quite some time for the story to get picked up at all. So why did it take so long? How did mainstream media totally miss the story? And what does it say about how race is reported? We'll follow that discussion with NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer and the fight to save Afghanistan.

Mr. Bento lunch style.

Source: nadja.robot

This is going to sound really dorky, but you know how if you turn on your radio at four in the morning you can hear an NPR newscast? (I don't do it that often, but we had a coffee rub on our steak last night.) That's a live (semi, I'm sure) person. And you know how you can hear interviews at ungodly hours on Morning Edition with generals and reporters and others? That's because someone was up all night booking them (one of our newer staff members is a former ME booker -- she still bears some scars). Newscast and Morning are two essential parts of NPR -- and even though they're wonderful (I feel like I actually can't wake up without both of them), it's well known that working on both units is hard work that will really screw your circadian rhythms up. All this is to say that Talk of the Nation, besides being good fun and filled with great people, has very few drawbacks schedule-wise. Except one: The Great TOTN Lunch Conundrum (GTLC). That two o'clock (E.S.T.) deadline makes it very hard to eat. (I realize this pales in comparison to working the overnight -- I'm sorry, y'all.) Fighting the crush at the microwave is darn near impossible (it seems like everybody in this building eats Lean Cuisine and Trader J's). Basically, everybody on this show has a different strategy about how to raise their blood sugar when they're crashing on a deadline (I have a virtual pantry -- and an actual mouse.) So, when this cute little tool came to my attention, I was intrigued. The Mr. Bento (there's a Ms., too!) lunchbox enables you to heat up your lunch, and keep it cold, all ! But here's the thing I really love about it -- there's a Flickr group that's entirely dedicated to what they put in their Mr. Bento. It's called Mr. Bento Porn, and it's full of great lunch ideas (don't worry, it's not full of actual porn). The trick is, don't start looking at the pictures when you're on deadline -- a), it will suck you in, and b) you'll get hungry. It's a great use of social networking -- and an even better use of the lunchbox itself. I'm looking forward to documenting my lunch as soon as my Mr. Bento arrives. I am a journalist, after all.

I'm always afraid to type in "Israel Lobby" to my computer for fear of what I'll see. Mania on the left and the right. Anti-Semitism, accusations of anti-Semitism. Charges of stifling the debate, debates that are hardly debates at all. But amongst all that sound and fury, the conversation does, for sure, signify something. The issue reached a fever pitch last year with the publication of a paper by two prominent academics -- John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt -- called "The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy." They've turned the paper into a book now, and claim, that whether or not you agree with their thesis, it's important to talk freely about the unique relationship between the United States and Israel. We agree. John Mearsheimer will be on today, as will Aaron David Miller to critique him. We're interested in your perceptions of this troublesome issue, and why it raises our blood pressure to talk about it.

We've talked with Ariel Dorfman before, about his plays, his books, and his many op-eds. He lived the violent political struggle in Chile in the 1970's, serving as cultural attache to the country's president, Salvador Allende. After the coup in 1973, he was one of the few who worked with Allende to make it out alive. Now a professor at Duke in North Carolina, he has a new documentary movie out, A Promise to the Dead. It's Dorfman's story of what happened in Chile, and how he faced down some of the demons that still haunt him. As he puts it, it's a film, "on what I had learned and the people of Chile had learned from the sorrows of intolerance and the bleakness of tyranny, how we had grown from our ashes, how we had dealt with our pain and overcome the legacy of terror."

It's been an Iraq-progress buzzword, seemingly synonymous with the word success: Anbar. On the hill last week we heard it countless times, and by week's end if it hadn't entered your consciousness somehow, you must've been spending lots of time under a rock (OK, that's a little harsh... but you'd have to be somewhere with no news radio, no internet, and no newspaper headlines). Anyway, while we were covering day two of the Petraeus testimony, NPR's Tom Bowman mentioned a gentleman he said had a great story about how Anbar got to its current, reportedly more hopeful state: Army Colonel Sean MacFarland. He was there, and instrumental in turning the region around. Scott tracked him down, and today he'll tell us how it's possible that once-dangerous cities like Ramadi and Fallujah are now, though not perfectly safe, certainly less scary.

The images from Jena, La. today is striking... masses of people unloading from buses to protest the charges against the "Jena Six." It's way too early to guess at how many people are there, but for a tiny town of about 3,000 people, it's not hard to overload the area. The racially charged story involves fights between black students and white students, criminal charges, and nooses hung from a tree. Today, we'll hear from one of the many bloggers who helped push this story into the mainstream. Shawn Williams is in Jena for the really. We'll also talk about the symbolism of the noose, and how it can mean such different things to different people.

Here's a quick look at what is happening today:

Last year, John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt wrote a controversial paper arguing that the power of the Israel Lobby has helped block progress towards peace in the Middle East, among other things. Those papers have been made into a book entitled The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy." John Mearsheimer talks about the book's theories and the intense criticism that followed the paper's initial publication. And Aaron David Miller joins us, and will take issue with Mearcheimer's arguments. We'll end our first hour with playwright, professor and author Ariel Dorfman. His biographical film, A Promise to the Dead, documents his return to Chile following a self-imposed exile.

We learn more about Iraq's Anbar province in our second hour. Army Col. Sean MacFarland returned from the province earlier this year and was a key figure in the military's efforts to stabilize its capital, Ramadi. He is among the guests who will paint a picture of the province, what the military is doing there, and the region's political importance in Iraq, and here in Washington. Following that, we will check in on the massive rally going on in Louisiana and hear from the African-American bloggers who helped drive the protest for equal justice. And, look at the cultural impact and symbolism of the hangman's noose.

Thousands of protesters are in Jena, Louisiana, this morning. In our second hour, we're going to talk to some of the bloggers and web organizers who publicized the story of the Jena 6 (see our show two weeks ago here), who raised its profile nationally. Where did you first hear about the Jena 6? What blogs have you used to follow the case?

As noted elsewhere, we will talk today about Anbar Province, which President Bush, General Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker have all held up as the model of their new strategy in Iraq.
If you glance at a map of Iraq, there's a road that runs west from Baghdad and the Tigris, passes through Fallujah, crosses the Euphrates at Ramadi, the provincial capital, then divides. One branch runs northwest to the Syrian frontier, the other due west, to Jordan.
Sixteen years ago, just after the end of what we now call the First Gulf War, it was my road to freedom.
As some of you may remember, I was among a group of reporters captured by the Iraqi Army just after the fighting ended. The whole story is too long and complicated to relate here - shameless plug, I tell much of the story in a chapter of my book Play by Play - Baseball, Radio and Life in the Last Chance League - but, after a week or so that included some scary moments, we were released to the International Committee of the Red Cross in Baghdad, piled onto a bus, and spent much of the day driving across Anbar, across the border and on into Amman.
It's a desert, but does not match the shifting sands Lawrence of Arabia image. Most of what I saw is flat, hard stony ground that stretches away forever. Unimaginably vast, with just a few villages scattered here and there. I remember seeing a communications tower in Fallujah toppled by a smart bomb, and being amazed that the buildings nearby appeared almost undamaged. In 2004, of course, Fallujah was largely destroyed. Back in 2001, there were dozens of charred trucks littered on the side of the highway - attacked by U.S.A.F. fighter bombers in the belief that they were mobile launchers for the Scud missiles Iraq fired at Israel. It later emerged that none of the mobile Scuds was hit, and that the wreckage I saw was of trucks driven by brave or foolhardy men willing to take the risks of the highway in hopes of great profits in Baghdad.
It all seemed so awful and so sad. And it's hard to fathom how much more awful, and much sadder it is now.

Earlier this week, the Iraqi government announced that it intends to expel Blackwater USA, a private security firm, based in eastern North Carolina, from Iraq. On Sunday, some employees of Blackwater USA were involved in a shooting that left several Iraqi civilians dead. The company has government contracts to protect senior American personnel in Iraq. As a North Carolinian, I learned about Blackwater USA early. In 2004, my friend and former teacher, Barry Yeoman, profiled the company for Mother Jones magazine. Months later, Jay Price and Joseph Neff, staff writers for The News & Observer, wrote a series of articles about Blackwater USA. Now that the United States has a smaller military, private security companies have a lot of work. Is that a good thing? Since the war in Iraq began, nothing has happened to any of Blackwater USA's high-profile targets. Are they doing work that the American military simply cannot do?

Last week, our Political Junkie segment was all Iraq... the hearings, the President's speech, rebuttals, etc, etc. This week, Hillary care, an AG nominee, attack ads, and guns join Iraq on the political agenda in Washington. And, the race for president in 2008 just keeps getting more and more crowded. Who betrayed MoveOn.org this time? Who else is retiring? Who's jumping into the fray? We'll talk about it all when Ken Rudin swings by for our weekly hit of the Political Junkie. Questions? Comments? Let us know...

This is not Dave Barry.

Source: ninjapoodles

Dave Barry drives a Cruzin Cooler around Coral Gables, Florida.
Dave Barry thinks a Marie Antoinette ejector head doll makes a great gift for your son or daughter.
Dave Barry knows why there's a giant eyeball on the dollar bill... and says three of those dollar bills per week is the perfect allowance for your kids.
Dave Barry spent a year sitting around and working on his toenails.
All of these statements are true, at least according to Dave Barry. What truths have you learned from him? He's got a new book out, Dave Barry's History of the Millennium -- So Far, which means you're about to learn some real and useful facts about the last six or seven years... and as a bonus, he's got a history of the previous thousand years for you, too!

Auschwitz is a universally acknowledged symbol of horror and inhumanity. It turns out, that like many places, it's also a place of predictability and banality as well. An archivist at the United States Holocaust Museum was sent these pictures of SS guards and other Auschwitz employees frolicking, relaxing, and enjoying themselves outside of their horrifying work. See more here. It's a stunning reminder that the men and women who perpetrated these crimes were terrifyingly human -- just like the people they were torturing.

Hi all. Busy day...but today's show looks like it's coming together quickly. Our first hour will be a discussion about U.S. contractors in Iraq. The Iraqi government recently decided to ban the private security contractor Blackwater USA after a deadly gunfight broke out in Baghdad. We'll talk about the role of American private contractors in Iraq and their participation within an ongoing military operation. Following that, our own political junkie Ken Rudin talks about Hillary Clinton's universal health care plan, the new Attorney General nominee, and the National Rifle Association's upcoming convention in Washington D.C. and the presidential candidates that are scheduled to attend.

So much has happened in the new millennium already that it's hard to image how we can possibly keep track of it all. Luckily, humorist Dave Barry has written all the note-worthy events down and compiled them in his new book, Dave Barry's History of the Millennium (So Far). We'll review the millennium years with Dave Barry in our second hour. Afterwards, we'll talk with Rebecca Erbelding, an archivist at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. She recently received over one-hundred photos that were discovered in a Frankfurt basement depicting the seemingly normal day-to-day lives of senior SS officers in Auschwitz.

Enjoy today's show!

The other day Scott passed me a fantastic column by Dave Zirin, who's always a favorite of ToTN. We had him on recently, so it wasn't a good fit for the air, but Scott knew I, in particular, would be interested in Zirin's latest piece on fantasy football. I'm a reasonably dedicated fantasy fan, and a huge Washington Redskins fan, so I latched onto Zirin's article immediately... and despaired to read that he thinks fantasy football is more disease than diversion. Zirin opines,

Those who puff the hookah of fantasy football believe that the leagues are just a harmless diversion that puts the average fan in a position to be "more involved" in the game. But behind the veneer of crunching numbers and poring over player statistics that goes into creating a fantasy team is more disengagement than involvement. Indeed, the numbers act as a moat between fantasy owner and the actuality of the game.

Basically, Zirin argues that fantasy football emphasizes the performances of individual players, forcing fans to pay more attention to the athlete than the team. I think he's right, but it's only a problem for some fantasy coaches. I used to be in a pretty intense fantasy league (so intense that I had to resign this year due to ugly politics... I get enough of politics at work, I don't need it in my recreational time!), and there were guys in the league who spent hours poring over stats, reading analysis, and checking the automatically-updating progress of their players every couple of minutes. While I wouldn't accuse any of them of abandoning their favorite teams (marquee Falcons were hot commodities, as the league was Georgia-based), their focus was definitely split, to say the least. For me, however, it made me much more aware of the league as a whole. As a long-time Redskins fan, I could speak fairly intelligently about that team, and probably about division rivals, but that was about it, till fantasy. Now I have a better understanding about the league as a whole. While it may not be terrifically deep, it's definitely more broad, and it makes Sundays even more fun, since I have six or seven years of fantasy teams behind me and can follow the players. One year, for instance, I had tons of Giants on my team, so I still follow Ike Hilliard (now in Tampa Bay), and another year it was Colts Colts Colts, so Brandon Stokely's still a random favorite of mine, even though he's since moved on to Denver. I think Zirin's point is a good one, and he's right -- outside of my Redskins, it's still all about individual players for me -- but ultimately, the camaraderie of fantasy has only enhanced my enjoyment of the NFL season. And, lucky me, I drafted Clinton Portis this year, so no conflict of interest there!

If there was a convicted sex offender living on your street, you'd want to know about it, right? Or maybe you don't. Either way, it's a fairly common knee-jerk reaction, particularly if you're a single female concerned about your safety, and especially if you've got kids. But Human Rights Watch has a new report, and it says these registries are inhumane and don't protect anyone from crime because the old adage, "once a sex offender, always a sex offender" isn't actually true. Plus, you can end up on these registries for offenses as mild as public urination. Should there be limits to who can access these registries, or who is listed on them? Also, have you checked out the information on your community? How has it affected your choices about where to live, where to walk, or where to let your children play?

Oh, O.J. I have no idea what he did in that hotel room in Vegas, but I do know that he's in jail awaiting a hearing for it. And once again, people are talking about O.J. Simpson. Was a gun involved? Was he setup? Is race an issue? What was he thinking? It's up to the courts to decide the facts, but the public will make up their own minds. And, as Earl Ofari Hutchinson points out, they are...

Whether the police did rush to judgment as Simpson claims -- and there's probably a little wiggle room to debate the magnitude of the charges -- and he eventually stands trial, the chatter from most will be that a killer is finally getting at least some of his due. Others will say that even Simpson can be a victim of a vindictive and unforgiving criminal justice system. The truth as always may lie somewhere between the two views. In any case, Simpson will do his best to make sure that an unbelieving world believes that even he can be falsely accused.

What do you believe? Do you even care about O.J. Simpson?

On the back of my front door, there is a post-it with a list of items like wallet, keys, cell phone, lunch (I know, it's hard to imagine walking out of the house without your keys, but I've done it -- usually the click of the self-locking door reminds me). I'm prone to misplacing things. This is partly due to a lack of housekeeping skills (things get buried purty easily), but it's also do to good old-fashioned absent-mindedness. I often walk away from the bar carrying the drink I ordered -- but not the wallet -- and once lost my phone on the National Mall (I just left it sitting under the tree I had been leaning against.) I do, however, have a better than average rate of return on all these lost items. The cell phone was recovered and returned to the Smithsonian Castle (an adventure in and of itself), and of the myriad of wallets I've dropped and/or waltzed away from, I've would say I've gotten about 50% back. I've always maintained that my general amiability is due to how many times a day I experience the euphoria of finding a lost thing -- there's nothing like that rush of relief. (But it probably also contributes to my general anixety, too.) How about you? What items have slipped from your fingers, only to reappear again?

We get lots and lots of books -- bins and bins of them, even -- every day. Some are suitable for our show. Some just aren't. And some could work. At our afternoon meetings, we argue doggedly for what we like. Producers pitch persuasively, but it's a hard game. Sarah's favorite probably isn't Scott's, which ordinarily isn't Barrie's. Unlike the rest of us, Neal has a "get-out-of-pitch-free" card. If he comes across a book he likes, we usually do the book. On today's show, David Cordingly, the author of one such text, Cochrane: The Real Master and Commander, will join us, to talk about Thomas Cochrane, a frigate captain during the Napoleonic Wars. He was the inspiration for C.S. Forester's famous swashbuckler, Horatio Hornblower. Fans of maritime history, we want to hear from you. What do you want to know about the 10th Earl of Dundonald?

Okay, today this is what's shaping up for your listening ears:

In our first hour we'll talk about a new human rights watch report entitled "No Easy Answers: Sex Offender Laws in the United States." It concludes that sex offender laws that are written to protect people from sexual abuse are too harsh, and may in fact be counter-productive. We'll review the report with its co-author Sarah Tofte, a researcher at Human Rights Watch, and discuss the impact of sex offender laws. Following that, we'll talk with author and political analyst Earl Ofari Hutchinson about the new charges facing O.J. Simpson. Hutchinson's latest article is entitled, "Do the Police Have It Out For O.J.?"

Second hour topic....second hour topic..now where the heck did we put the second hour topic? Well, good thing we'll be talking about the trying tales of things lost and found. From that lost piece of luggage to the one family photo you could have sworn you put right there on that pile...what's the most bizarre thing you've lost...and then found? Remember, you'll always find it in the last place you look. (why on EARTH do people say that?) At the end of the second hour, David Cordingly, the author of "Cochrane: The Real Master and Commander" talks about the checkered life and legacy of Lord Thomas Cochrane, a British naval hero who was the model for Horatio Hornblower and Jack Aubry, and a controversial figure during the Napoleonic era.

Enjoy!!

There's nothing we like more here at NPR (or ToTN for that matter) then an acronym. We are an acronym for goodness' sake. Sometimes, in a meeting, you have to duck so as not to be hit by a stray letter. "Isn't he at CSIS.?" "I thought it was CFR." "Can someone call SAIS and find out? I mean, WT*." You'd think, by the way, that chat/text-speak would have somehow missed such an august institution as NPR, even though it's seriously prevalent on The Hills. Unfortunately, no. It's a darn FAA around here (Flying Acronym Attack). That's why it made me giggle this morning, when, halfway through my MRI (Morning Read-In), consisting of the WP, NYT, and Fark, I found this story on the last's rather thorough round-up of "news." Apparently, a streetcar is going into the South Lake Union neighborhood of Seattle. It's affectionately being labeled the South Lake Union Trolley. You can see, of course, that the trolley is acronymically challenged (SLUT). And even though the SLUS (South Lake Union Streetcar) is its real, grown-up, name, that hasn't stopped all the clever youngsters from making witty t-shirts with the SLUS's first acronym. Bless Fark for finding just the thing to make a Tuesday a little more... human. And now, it's your turn to ride the acronym train. Give it to us! (And please, we've heard National Propaganda Radio before, from both the right and the left.) Nail Polish Remover! Nepalese Rupee! No Prior Record! No Purchase Required! (Except, public radio sure does take pledges. Now Pledge yer Riches.)

At the beginning of the school year, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg instituted an unusual program to end poverty. It's an incentive program: one that pays for good behavior. Parents can get twenty-five dollars for attending a parent-teacher conference, kids can get fifty dollars for getting a library card. It's a controversial program, but those who support it, believe that the incentives might really work. Others think it might make people living in poverty even more dependent. The question is more of a philosophical one: should we be paying people to do things they should be doing anyway? What do you think? Are incentives a good idea?

*Actually, I won't. It's public radio, people. Come on.

I read the comics this morning, for work. I was happy to see that Jon Arbuckle is still soliciting advice from his sardonic cat; Hagar is still pillaging from someone, somewhere in Scandinavia; and Beetle is still stationed on Camp Swampy, with Cookie and Plato. For these guys, life in Comic-land doesn't seem to change. But in other strips, like Opus, characters comment on current events every day. Lately, that has been problematic.

In her column yesterday, Deborah Howell, The Washington Post's ombudsman, responded to readers' complaints that the newspaper's executive editor, Len Downie, pulled Opus from the paper's pages twice recently, on Aug. 26 and Sept. 2, because they were "inappropriate." (A character in Opus, Lola Granola, became "a radical Islamist").

On weekdays, The Washington Post fills three pages with comics. How provocative should they be?

Watching online previews for about 20 new fall shows in preparation for today's show, a familiar feeling stole over me... oh my gosh, what I am going to do? I'm going to have NO LIFE because there are so many good shows coming out! One after another, they all look can't-miss -- from the "magical forensics" of Pushing Daisies to the social experiment of Kid Nation, not to mention the infectious confection Gossip Girl and the outsider story Aliens in America, night after night of must-see TV stretch all the way to Christmas. Or do they? I seem to remember having the exact same feeling last time around, and I haven't actually stuck with any of those shows. I then realized that for me, at least, the preview period of any new television season is more like Christmas Eve than anything else -- the packages are lined before me, shiny and mysterious and begging to be ripped into. Though the gifts I receive are nearly always lovely, by the time the new year turns, they are, though not forgotten, somehow absorbed. Yes, I mean to watch 30 Rock. But do I? Not so much. What about you? What new shows have stuck for you, and who are the front runners for this honor in Fall '07?

It's one of those things only discussed in certain circles... just what is it with the Hollywood formula of "white woman lead + black woman best friend = gold!"? I've often wondered about it, and was reminded again after seeing The Nanny Diaries, featuring Scarlett Johannson as the lead, with Alicia Keys as the best friend who keeps her sane. It's a setup as old as the hills, but what's it about? Is it about diversity? Tokenism? Or is it just about finding the best actress for the role? There's no denying these women make the shows and movies better: When I first caught a glimpse of Alicia stepping off the subway, I immediately paid more attention, looking forward to her role, and Wanda Sykes' humor and talent are indispensable on The New Adventures of Old Christine. It follows, though, that women this talented should play more than supporting roles... but that's not what we see. What do you think? Does it bother you? Or is it just about assembling the best possible cast?

Happy Monday. Neal Conan is back all week, and here's what's in store for today:

New York City is about to start paying thousands of students for good grades and near-perfect attendance. Their parents can also make money by working and taking their kids to the doctor. Giving money to poorer families is part of a program in the city to encourage better parenting. But aren't making good grades and doctor's visits something kids and parents should be doing anyway? In our first hour we'll ask, does it pay to pay for doing the right thing? Following that, Washington Post ombudsman Deborah Howell talks about the controversy surrounding a Muslim-themed comic strip the newspaper refused to print fearing the depiction of Muslim female garb would be seen as offensive.

We'll talk about the new fall television line-up in our second hour. TV critics run down what stays, what goes... and just how many reality shows are there now?!?!? What shows are you looking forward to watching? Which ones do you wish would just get canceled? At the end of the hour, L.A. Times reporter Greg Braxton talks about why he feels black actresses continuously find themselves type cast as the star's best friend, but never get the lead.

I spent way too much time watching TV this weekend (and not just the Emmys, somehow I sat glued to Richard Simmons scolding a 500-pound man for falling off the wagon, too). In other words, thank goodness the new Fall shows start soon. I made room on my ReplayTV for Heroes and Grey's, and added Bionic Woman and Back to You. One show I left off my list: Kid Nation. And not for any high-minded intellectual reasons, sadly, it just looks like a lousy TV program (and since CBS isn't sending screeners to the critics, there might be something to that assessment... still, hype plus controversy often equals ratings, at least initially). The show has definitely hit some people's gag reflex. Hyped as: "40 Kids for 40 days with no grown-ups. Can they do it?" It's Lord of the Flies meets reality TV. Parents reportedly signed lengthy contracts promising not to sue (there were news stories that some of the kids got minor injuries), in return for the chance to win cash prizes. Meghan Daum had an interesting take on this over the weekend in the Los Angeles Times.

All this makes for a fascinating case study in the way "having big plans" for your kids may be changing. A few decades ago, these same folks might have been pushing their kids to win a science fair. But now that the culture of celebrity worship spans several generations, and because it's a biological imperative for parents to want for their children what they couldn't attain themselves, it makes perfect sense that some may want to see their kids on reality shows more than they want them becoming doctors.

Success, we're told these days, is not just about achievement but public (preferably televised) achievement. Parents who buy into this might be foolish, but they're also fiercely protecting their kids from the fate we've come to fear most: invisibility.

What do you make of this show, and the parents who agreed to let their children take part... Is it a unique opportunity for kids, or a disaster waiting to happen? And of course, the big question: Will you watch?

We'd packed the family minivan to capacity, with clothes, a mini-fridge, and extra-long sheets. After a 12-hour, 600-mile haul up I-81, we were in remote Ithaca (Gorges!), with several-thousand other families. Almost as soon as I'd unpacked my stuff, my dad was ready to hit the road for home. He thumbed through my copy of the course catalog. He paced around my cell-like room. And he encouraged my mom to hurry up. She wasn't interested in leaving. Not yet, at least. Couldn't we reminisce about one more vacation, birthday party, or family feud? Did I need anything else from Target? Had my financial aid come through? My dad, a professor, doled out fatherly and academic advice. My misty-eyed mom told me to call home. Then they were off. E-mail and cell phones made it easy for us to keep in touch. We exchanged short messages and quick phone calls. My former bedroom would make a nice study, my dad said. My mom reported that my younger siblings were more voluble than they used to be. In a few short weeks, I realized that life at home continued, much as it had, without me there. For a fleeting moment, I was sad. But there were books to read, classes to take, and six-packs to down! Then and there, on a fall afternoon, I recognized my new independence. And I realized that there would be -- and should be -- anecdotes involving six-packs that my parents would never hear.*

On today's show, we're talking about letting go. How involved should parents be in their kids' college lives? If they sign tuition checks, should you write -- and sign -- letters to them? Did you call your parents from school? Every Sunday? Every day? Should your mom know your class schedule? Or your professors' email addresses?

* Not because I don't remember them, of course!

And all is right in the world.

Source: clemente

Clotheslines were a regular part of my childhood, like dinner tables and Hungry Hungry Hippos. When I think back, I remember my parents' clothesline, a high-tech contraption that stretched for about 25 yards, the rope strung between two trees behind our house. My dad rigged it so that you could stand in one spot, pin up a shirt, tug the line, and pin another, till it was full. The lines at our beach house were simpler, a classic T-Post setup draped with an ever-changing rainbow of towels and bathing suits. At my grandmother's farm you can still see the classic four-sided, tiered variety (Does anyone know what they're called? Colleague Susan Lund found me loads of "umbrella" clotheslines, and I guess that's what this one is, but it's really old), though she now prefers to toss clothes in the dryer. Though all three lines have fallen into disuse (or have been disassembled), I can still keenly recall the scent of clothes dried in the sun... it's like nothing else. In some communities, they're considered an eyesore, which I can't understand at all. Nothing says "people live here" -- people who probably smell good, too -- like a clothesline bedecked with fluttering sheets and overalls dancing in the breeze. What do you think? Does it bug you?

Most polls say the same thing: overwhelming disapproval with the war in Iraq. But there aren't that many bodies in the Town Square, and anti-war activism seems oddly diffuse. You can find any number of signs at an anti-war rally -- from VoteVets to Free Palestine all the way to throwbacks like Students for a Democratic Society. But where is there a real united front -- a real anti-war movement? Vietnam-era protests are often trotted out as examples to follow, but times are different -- there's no draft, no cool counter-culture, and no baby boom. Many people complain that the anti-war movement is there, strong, yet under covered by the mainstream media -- well, today, we're talking about the protest. If you're anti-war, and find that you don't fit into the anti-war activism that exists -- let us know why. If you're marching on Saturday, tell us what you think of the organizing principles. Or, if you're an activist, tell us what's working -- and what's not.

It's nearly impossible to sing, the lyrics are archaic (O'er?), but it's one song most of us think we know all the words to: The Star-Spangled Banner (and trust me, you probably don't). Patt Morrison at the Los Angeles Times says it's also a prime opportunity for a beleagured politician to take a stand: instead of the perennial favorite, flag-burning, why not propose a constitutional amendment to protect our national anthem? I have just one question for Ms. Morrison: Does that mean Atlanta fans won't be able to sing the last line how they're wont to do: "...and the home, of the.... BRAVES!" Because that might be an amendment I could get behind... so long as I can continue to shout "O!" at the beginning of "Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave..." when I stand up and sing at Camden Yards!

Well, if you blinked, you missed him. Neal Conan is away again, but filling in today is the familiar voice of NPR Congressional Reporter Andrea Seabrook. And here's what's shaping up for today:

Are you a helicopter parent, hovering over your child's head, micro-managing his or her every move? There's no doubt parents should stay front and center in their children's lives... but just how involved is TOO involved? We'll have some advice to help parents release their grips on their child's sneaker laces, one finger at a time. Following that, we'll ask the question: Where do you cross the line from "Let's do our best to help save the environment" to "Going green is downright GROSS!!!" Poughkeepsie Journal reporter Michael Valkys talks about some of the "questionable" things people do for the sake of a healthier planet... and how in some towns they could actually be breaking the law.

This week, the media has focused heavily on the war in Iraq -- in light of the "report card" testimony on the Hill earlier this week and President Bush's upcoming address on his plan for a moderate troop withdrawal. You'd think with all this talk about the war, anti-war activism would also be the news of the day. But with almost every poll stating that most Americans disapprove of the war, why then does an anti-war movement lack movement? We'll talk about that at the top of our second hour. Afterwards, break out your earplugs. Los Angeles Times writer Patt Morrison cries "Anthem Abuse" and pleads for Americans to stop butchering our National Anthem. Roseanne Barr anyone?

Enjoy the show and your weekend!

We're chasing an ender today about when "green"... gets gross. Sometimes saving the environment can be sort of a pain in the butt (literally), or, in the case of overgrown lawns and clotheslines, downright eyesores. (More on that later, hopefully on the show.) Which brings me to the clotheslines. When I moved into my first house, my sister was nice enough to give me this book on housekeeping. It's no secret that I'm not much for the domestic sciences; it's hard to walk out of my house without cat hair and a string cheese wrapper clinging to you. But I felt inspired by this encyclopedia of domesticity. Finally! A method to fold fitted sheets! A complete explanation of what dust mites eat (you)! The enzymatic makeup of stains! I spent weeks in my dusty and dirty house, eating string cheese and reading the book. I was much enthused. I was going to become one of those people whose homes you can walk in barefoot! I took my good intentions to the bedroom first - "The Cave of Nakedness." (How can you possibly not love a book that quotes Auden for housekeeping inspiration?) The list was endless: air the bed out, windows open, while you're in the shower. Iron the sheets, and if you can't manage that, at least the pillowcases. (Seriously, my clothes are wrinkled. %^#%$ the pillowcases.) And while laundering one of your three sets of high quality sheets, remember, don't put them in the dryer. Put them on a clothesline, in the sun (I felt like "in Tuscany," might be coming next). And that's where I got strung out -- the clothesline. Imagine stumbling out to your balcony with soaking sheets, waiting for the sunny day, stringing up a line that's long enough for a queen set! I gave up. I want to be environmentally and domestically healthy, really I do, but it's simply too much. I am unashamed to say I've let go -- every night I crawl into my wrinkled bed with a good book, and eat a cracker and some string cheese.*

*This is not to say, however, that the book is not fascinating, and those who are morally superior to me will probably benefit greatly from it. Happy ironing.

This whole summer was full of threequels, why should politics be any different? For the last two days I've been completely immersed in these hearings on Iraq. Part One: Gen. Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker make their case to the House Armed Services, and Foreign Affairs Committees. Part Two: The Senate Armed Services Committee. And Part Three: The Senate Foreign Relations Committee. The plot was a little predictable, and at times, dull. There was the occasional surprise, but so much of the big news leaked in advance that the only mystery is whether this week's testimony will actually change anything. The progress report on Iraq has been front page news all week. Did anything you hear or read change your mind?

Few events excite New York's intelligentsia like The New Yorker Festival, "a weekend-long celebration of arts and ideas." (Where else can Seymour Hersh mingle with John C. Reilly?) Last year, when I lived in New York, I bought a ticket to "Islam and the West," a panel discussion at The Town Hall, in Midtown, moderated by George Packer, of The New Yorker magazine. For two hours, he orchestrated a lively, illuminating conversation with Omar Ahmad, of the Council on American-Islamic Relations; Ayaan Hirsi Ali, who wrote Infidel; Mahmood Mamdani, a professor at Columbia University; Azar Nafisi, the author of Reading Lolita in Tehran; Abdullahi Ahmed An-Na'im, who teaches at Emory University; and Lawrence Wright, Packer's colleague. I was so impressed with Packer's intelligence and eloquence, and his ability to corral a rowdy crowd of the New York intelligentsia I mentioned earlier, that I bought -- and read -- his most-recent book, The Assassins' Gate: America in Iraq, almost immediately. (In New York, bookstores are open late). In the last year, Packer has written several strong pieces on Iraq, including a stunning article about Iraqi translators. And he has a new blog. His most recent story, "Planning for Defeat," is fascinating. By his estimation, a withdrawal of American troops is inevitable, and we need to give some serious thought to the geopolitical ramifications of our exit from Iraq. He'll join us to talk about the politics of withdrawal, in the first hour. What do you think is the best way to leave Iraq? And what do you think will happen when we do?

In my opinion, Big Love is one of the best shows on television; a smart, humorous, and thoughtful take on the American family. It's truly the best kind of satire -- it makes you cringe, and giggle, and then look at your own glass house -- even if there aren't multiple spouses in it.* Big Love portrays two kinds of polygamy; the reality is there are poly-methods to polygamy. We assume plural marriage looks like the Warren Jeffs/Roman Grant model -- underage girls in prairie dresses -- but that's not always the case. Today, we're giving you the whole gamut; a real look inside the practice, where it came from, and both critique and defense. Is this a matter of religious tolerance (when, of course, it doesn't break the law)? Is this about a definition of family? Dig deep folks... and listen. You might be surprised by what you hear.

*Honestly, don't pretend you haven't wanted to split your significant o's in two, or three, just once. At least so you could go out on the town with one, while the other babysits and cleans the mold out of the shower.

First, the winners. In case you missed it (and I did... I was too busy watching Washington beat the Dolphins, yeah!), Buffalo Bills tight end Kevin Everett tried to take out Denver Bronco Domenik Hixon and ended up taking himself out. It looked like a regular hit (and he got his man), but when Everett's helmet collided with Hixon's shoulder pads, something went horribly wrong. Everett left the field in an ambulance, and early reports predicted the worst (or almost): permanent paralysis. But guess what? He's now moving his arms and legs, and his doctor says he'll "walk out of the hospital." !!! Nice to hear some good news, right? Now, onto the losers... the New England Patriots may have been busted for taking video of the NY Jets' hand signals -- oops! Turns out spying from the sidelines is nothing new... Much as I want to believe my high school's hero didn't do it, it doesn't look good. So which do you think is the bigger story?

Hail, hail, the gang's all here!! Neal Conan et al are back from the Hill, and things are about as normal as we can muster two hours before showtime. Here are the show topics we are working on for you today:

The first hour's main topic is a discussion about the politics of Iraq. What has actually changed following the two days of testimony by General David Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker on their assessment of the war in Iraq. NPR's Ken Rudin is moving up in the TOTN world this week and talks about how the war has affected politics in America. We'll continue our discussion on Iraq at the end of the hour with The New Yorker writer George Packer. He'll talk about his article in which he opines that maintaining current troop levels in Iraq for the next year will be difficult unless extraordinary measures are taken. It's called, "Planning for Defeat."

In our second hour, we go inside the world of the controversial group lead by polygamist Warren Jeffs, known as The Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Currently, Jeffs is facing charges of rape as an accomplice in the arranged marriage of a 14-year-old girl. The topic for the end of that hour is still coming together, so stay tuned!!

Almost halfway through September, most people who are heading off to college have done it by now. Then, there are those who choose to push college off for a year or two. When I graduated from high school, I had the big idea to run off and travel for a year. The usual cliche: an American student backpacking through Europe. Logic won out in the end, and somehow turning down the admissions and scholarship offers just didn't seem worth it. So, when I read this Washington Post Magazine last month, I was hit with a little bit of nostalgia. Apparently, taking a year off isn't for us slackers anymore... it's turned into a whole industry:

the irony is that the gap year risks becoming like just another award studding the resumes of students on the elite academic track. Some colleges and universities are even starting to promote the gap year as a way to gain admission. Georgetown University occasionally asks a few students to take a gap year and defer enrollment so that the school can hang on to more of the best high school students after the incoming freshman class has reached its capacity. And on its admissions Web site, Harvard University acknowledges the usefulness of a gap year while sympathizing with the academic straitjackets of today's uber high-schooler. In an essay titled "Time Out or Burn Out for the Next Generation," the dean and director of admissions offer this tantalizing line: "Occasionally students are admitted to Harvard or other colleges in part because they accomplished something unusual during a year off."

Schools now ask students to take a year off?!?! I may head back to college. I skipped out on the gap year, but it seems like most people who took that gap year spent it traveling. Now, it may be more about finding something impressive to say on that college essay than finding yourself. Anyone take a gap year? What did you do, and did it affect your college plans... in a good way, or bad?

Today, in our morning meeting, we had a few more recent college grads than usual (new intern, and a couple of young ex-interns, etc.). The group -- besides making me feel ancient -- agreed that dialogue, and protest, about the Iraq war was more absent on their college campuses because many college students felt "removed," from it. They didn't know anyone who had gone, and couldn't see the effects of the war in their daily lives -- so the headlines were just that: headlines. It got us talking -- in a war where civilians seem so far from the front lines (we're not even seeing our taxes increase) who is sacrificing? Obviously, it's overwhelmingly the military, but it's others as well. As attitudes about Muslims grow even more suspicious, and more and more civilian contractors take dangerous jobs in Baghdad, we decided to take a look at who is sacrificing in this war. Let us know who you think has been hardest hit -- and if you're one of those who's given something to this war.

Marking 9/11 is a tricky business. It's the sixth anniversary of the day when almost three thousand Americans were lost in a day of heartbreak, terror, and massive disillusionment. On my way to work this morning, I looked at the clock, and thought "the towers were burning by now." It was eerie, sad, and made me think of how much of my life has been defined by that moment -- you cannot be a journalist and not run into a reminder of 9/11 almost every day -- and yet, my heart, my life, the essence of who I am, has changed hardly at all compared to those who lost people on that day. So, my job requires me to mark 9/11 -- what are you doing on this sixth anniversary, if anything? What stray thoughts crept into your mind this Tuesday morning?

In hours and hours of testimony on Capitol Hill, Ambassador Ryan Crocker and General David Petraeus have indicated that the so-called surge is working (even if their microphones aren't). But they need more time. Today we'll turn to two reporters, two estimable Iraq analysts, and you.

Are you paying attention to what Ambassador Crocker and General Petraeus are saying today? What do you think about what they said yesterday? Have you tuned into our live coverage, from the Hill? Have Crocker and Petraeus assured you that we've made strides? Or have they reassured you that we haven't?

We'll hear from our own Anne Garrels, who is in Combat Outpost Apache. She told Steve Inskeep, of Morning Edition, that she has noticed "dramatic improvements" in Adhamiyah, the Sunni enclave from which she has been reporting.

Gordon Lubold, of The Christian Science Monitor, is also in Iraq, burning the midnight oil. And eating ice cream, apparently.

P.J. Crowley, who advised President Clinton on national security affairs, is now at the Center for American Progress, here in Washington. He argues that the Bush Administration should focus more on Iraq's political transformation and the so-called war of ideas.

And finally, Michael O'Hanlon, of the Brookings Institution, will give us his reaction to the hearings. After a recent trip to Iraq, he co-authored a now-notorious opinion piece for The New York Times. O'Hanlon is on Capitol Hill, watching the hearings unfold. If all goes according to plan, he'll step outside Room 216, into the Hart Senate Office Building's modern, marble halls, to give us a call on his cell phone.

By now, the name Abu Ghraib carries with it a whole host of ugly associated words... torture, abuse, brutalized detainees, and worse. But what about the folks there who were doing good work? The facility there is the size of a small town, which means the vast majority of servicemen and women were not involved in the horrors that transpired in the prison. Army Reserve nurse and Lt. Colonel Deanna Germain was one of those multitudes, and she treated service people and prisoners alike while all the time rumors... and then hordes of journalists searching for details about the abuse in the prison.... swirled. She's written a book about her experience, Reaching Past the Wire, and you can leave questions for her here.

John Ydstie is our guest host again today while Neal Conan continues NPR's coverage of testimony by General David Petraeus and U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker on Capitol Hill today.

In today's first hour, we are marking the sixth anniversary of the September 11th attacks in 2001. As thousands of American soldiers and civilians make the ultimate sacrifice in fighting the war in Iraq launched after the attacks, we are wondering... What kinds of sacrifices are being made here as the conflict continues? Do we sacrifice individual rights? What sacrifices are you making? We'll also read from emails and blogs and hear from listeners about how they are commemorating this day and what the anniversary means to them. We want to hear from you as well.

Our second hour we'll talk to a reporter for the Christian Science Monitor, a senior fellow and director of homeland security, and a senior fellow for foreign policy studies about General David Petreus' testomony on the Hill and his progress report for Iraq. We end that hour with Deanna Germain, an Army Reserve nurse whose new memoir, Reaching Past the Wire, talks about the challenges she faced while stationed in the now infamous Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq.

Day two of the Petraeus/Crocker testimony looks a lot like day one, though the faces on the dais have changed. The charts and graphs, the photographers in the pit, the witnesses... all appear the same. There's a lot more star power today, though, with '08 presidential hopefulls all over the place (which is not to draw attention from three yesterday (Tancredo, Hunter, and Paul), especially Congressman Duncan Hunter (R-CA), who declared in January and joined us twice during our coverage yesterday. Thanks, sir!). First into the room was Senator Biden (D-DE), chair of the Foreign Relations committee. Close on his heels, Chris Dodd, Senator from Connecticut. Senator Obama (D-IL) walked in a bit after the hearing got underway to much hullabaloo -- heck, even I stood and peered down into the hearing room for a glimpse of the superstar Senator. Later today, when the room flips and instead hosts the Armed Services committee, we'll get to see another couple of bigwigs: Senators McCain (R-AZ) and Clinton (D-NY). Even as the faces change, though, one thing remains the same: the hand soap in the House bathrooms smells lovely, like citrus... in the Senate, not so much. It smells like, well, puke. Don't get me wrong -- I'm still happy to be here. I'm just packing my own soap next time!

As General Petraeus answers questions about Iraq on the Hill, a new poll of Iraqis asked them all kinds of questions about their experience in post-invasion Iraq. We'll have the results of that poll -- if you have questions about what they said about their experiences... post them here.

We hit the jackpot with our (relatively) new FBI correspondent, Dina Temple-Raston. Not only is she an excellent reporter, but she's a crackerjack writer. Her new book, The Jihad Next Door: The Lackawanna Six And Rough Justice in the Age of Terror, is so riveting, it's like reading a novel. We'll talk about it with her today -- and you can comment here.

At 11 this morning, the Press Gallery outside room 345 in the Cannon Office building was abuzz with reporters chugging coffee and downing sandwiches, crews testing lines and surveying the room... All in anticipation of a long day of testimony from General David Petraeus and U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker. About half of the Talk of the Nation staff is here too (and fully 3/4 of your trusty BotN bloggers), and Neal (and Scott and I) will be with the hearing gavel-to-gavel, today and tomorrow. We don't anticipate anything terribly earth-shattering out of either gentleman as the gist of their testimony has been leaked, but since a whole boatload of congresspeople will get to lob questions their way, you just never know. By now, the hearing's been underway for a couple hours, so guest host John Ydstie has highlights... What's the one thing you'd love to hear them say?

On Thursday, September 20, a court will sentence Mychal Bell, one of the so-called "Jena 6," who has been convicted of aggravated second-degree battery (a judge threw out another conviction, on conspiracy, last week). Bell, who was originally charged with attempted second-degree murder for his part in an assault on a white student at Jena High School, in Jena, Louisiana, faces up to 15 years in prison. Many prominent civil rights organizations, including the NAACP and the Southern Poverty Law Center, have sent representatives to Jena. And thousands of protesters are expected to visit the small town, to hold a rally, on September 20. Our capable guest host, John Ydstie, will talk with Howard Witt, a senior correspondent for the Chicago Tribune, who broke the story in May. He'll walk us through this complex, confusing, and troubling case. Professor Charles Ogletree, of Harvard University, who is advising the lawyers representing the six accused students, will talk to us about the court proceedings in Jena. And Billy Wayne Fowler, a member of the La Salle Parish School Board, will tell us how this case has reverberated locally. Along with you! Tell us how you see the case... and whether you've been blogging or talking about it.

Hi. I'm David Gura, freelance -- and freewheeling -- editorial assistant, charged with booking and pre-interviewing guests, helping with scripts, screening phone calls, and, starting today, contributing to the Blog of the Nation. Awesome.

When I was a kid, I stuffed envelopes at North Carolina Public Radio, in Chapel Hill, during pledge drives. When my voice changed, station staff let me answer phones. Since then, I've gone to college, interned for The State of Things and All Things Considered, acquired a master's degree, and accrued some significant financial debt. Admittedly, that's less-awesome. But I'm paying it back, slowly but surely. Really, Mom, I am.

Anyhow, I'm happy to be here. And I'm glad to be blogging. Finally.

Over the summer, several of you have asked us to focus on a small town in Louisiana making national news. Today, at long last, we are.

In Jena, in the LaSalle Parish, just north of Catahoula Lake, six black teenagers beat up a white classmate after months of racial unrest and violent, racially-motivated incidents, including fights, a fire, and a so-called "prank." Initially, the local district attorney charged the six students with attempted murder. Since then, he has reduced the charges levied against them.

This story has caught fire -- but slowly. I'm wondering, how does a story like this become national, albeit at a slow pace? We'd love to hear from those of you who've emailed newspaper items, talked to your friends about it, enflamed the blogs with it. And stay tuned for our coverage in the second hour....

It's the start of the work week and we are hard at work on today's show -- with half the staff on Capitol Hill for the Petraeus hearings! In hour one, NPR's FBI correspondent Dina Temple Raston will talk about her book "Jihad Next Door" -- itt outlines the journey of six Muslim-American teenagers (some of whom were voted "friendliest" at their local high schools!) and later ended up in an Al Qaeda training camp. In the end of that hour we'll hear statements from General David Petraeus who is speaking on the Hill today about conditions in Iraq since the U.S. troop surge six months ago.

In our second hour we'll discuss what can be learned about the justice system in the racially charged case in the small town of Jena, Louisiana. We'll end the hour with Gary Langer, director of polling for ABC News, and find out what a new opinion poll from Iraq reveals about how Iraqis think about the war.

Larry Craig has vociferously denied that he is gay, but the allegations have plagued him for a long time now. Question is, whose business is it? "Outing" is a tricky subject -- for a long time there was an unspoken rule about the homosexuality of public figures: it's strictly a private matter, to be ignored or sometimes even deliberately covered up by the press. But since the press has enlarged to include everyone with a computer, and homophobia slowly and steadily has declined, "outing" has become more and more popular. Mike Rogers runs a blog that "reports on closeted hypocrites in the government who work against the gay and lesbian community." And there's the crux of it: some people believe that hypocrisy is a reason to make something that used to be nobody's business... everyone's. We'll talk to him today, as well as crisis management and journalist folks, about the ethics of outing. What do you think?

Summer tends to be quiet time on Wall Street... Investors leave on vacation, and so do CEOs. But what happened this year? In late July, we watched the Dow break the 14,000 point record. Then fall back below 13,000. It's rebounded a bit since, but is nowhere near 14,000 anymore. David Gardner, our Motley Fool, is back from his summer vacation. We'll talk about the wild ride on Wall Street, and what lessons investors can take from it. And check in on Neal's fantasy portfolio... Apple and Whole Foods made some news recently. What are your money questions for the Fool?

At long last... our hotly anticipated show on Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD). We promoted it a couple of weeks back, but then couldn't get the right guests, so we moved it, and no small number of our listeners were frustrated with the change. Understandable, particularly if order is a major concern in your life. A lot of us think we've got a touch of OCD -- see my list-making entry for one of my little obsessions -- but true OCD can be a lot more serious than list-making and worries that you left the coffeemaker on. Do you have it, or does someone you know? How does it change the way you live your life?

It's no secret I grew up on PBS. At our house, TV was limited to PBS and sports for our formative years, and my mom loves to tell the story (OK, she only tells it when I prod her... but I can tell it's a fond memory) of me, age 2 or so, hollering at her from the jungle gym at the park in our neighborhood, "What time is it???" Why was a toddler so obsessed with time? I had a hot, daily, 3 o'clock date with Sesame Street. I continued to watch Sesame Street when I was "too old" for it, and also picked up new favorites like 3-2-1 Contact, The Electric Company, and Square One (PLEASE tell me someone else out there remembers the Fat Boys on Square One singing "One thousand times one million... that's ONE BILLION" about records and hamburgers? Oh my gosh! I've been searching for this on and off since YouTube was invented... here it is!). Anyway, all this to say, PBS's kids programming ruled while I was growing up, and it still does. Their latest educational AND awesome show, which debuts tomorrow, is WordGirl. It's an animated show about a girl who's a student and a superhero, who has a preternaturally expansive vocabulary. What's your favorite PBS kids' programming memory?

Here's why Luciano Pavarotti was so superlative: in our morning meeting, we literally had a small scuffle over whether he hit eight or nine high Cs in his famous performance as Tonio in Donizetti's La Fille du Regiment. (It was nine.) The towering tenor died last night at the age of 71, and because there's almost nothing more that can be said about him, we've decided to play you the Donizetti aria (it's "Ah! Mes amis") in its entirety. Enjoy.*

*I do want to add that Pavarotti's general classiness is one more reason to abjure opera porn.

Here's what's coming up today, short and sweet:

In hour one, we'll talk to blogger Mike Rogers. He specializes in outing members of Congress whom he believes to be gay, but who act against what Rogers regards as gay rights. We'll ask him and other guests when, if ever, it is okay to publicize a politician or celebrity's sexual orientation. Later in that hour, we visit with the Motley Fool's David Gardner and check in on Neal's fantasy portfolio.

Our second hour begins with a discussion on life dealing with obsessive compulsive disorder. When does checking, double-checking and second-guessing cross the line into obsession? Following that, we talk about the adventures of WordGirl with the animated children's series creator, Dorothea Gillim. WordGirl saves the world with her sophisticated vocabulary and the cartoon series premieres tomorrow on PBS Kids Go. At the end of the hour, we'll pay tribute to legendary Italian tenor Luciano Pavarotti, who died today after a battle with cancer.

Thanks for listening. Enjoy the show.

While perusing the papers this morning I came across a short AP article in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. It was about a performance by stand-up comic Eddie Griffin, who was pulled from the stage mid-act at a Black Enterprise magazine event outside Miami due to his repeated use of the N-word. It immediately reminded me of our interview with comedian Paul Mooney, in which he formally renounced the word (with which his routines were once heavily peppered). He said, "I had an affair with the word. I was romancing it. I was married to the word. And that was then and now it's time to divorce the word." At first, I wasn't even sure I was going to write about this -- on the one hand, it's another incremental development in the Michael Richards story, and on the other hand, it's an incredibly thorny issue, particularly for a white woman to write about. But then I realized, thanks to this latest iteration I just have a lot of questions, and maybe you BotNers have some input. My first question is about comedians choosing not to use the N-word: Is it different when someone -- or a group -- makes that decision for you, as in Griffin's case? And secondly, as was raised by a commenter at Defamer: Is this going to end up putting black comics out of business? (I think Mr. Mooney would say no, after all, "funny is funny," even without that word.)

Thinking back to January of 2005, when Condoleezza Rice took over as Secretary of State, it's hard to believe how much has changed. She went on a world tour shortly after her swearing in, and was a political rock star. As I recall, there was even a bit of talk about a possible "President Condi." A bit more than two years later, and her celebrity status is bogged down in the war in Iraq, and the failed push to reshape the Middle East with democracy. It's been a long two years, and Glenn Kessler chronicles it all in a new biography, "The Confidante: Condoleezza Rice and the Creation of the Bush Legacy."

If ever a day begged for a political junkie segment, this is it. We planned to talk a little bit about Senator Larry Craig's resignation, and then he changed his mind (maybe). The only problem is that when he made the phone call to let his team know about his new plans, he dialed the wrong number and left a very detailed message. On the campaign front, Fred Thompson won't be in the lineup for tonight's debate in New Hampshire, but he'll get plenty of airtime to make his loooong-awaited announcement. John McCain is still catching flack for calling a high school student a "little jerk," all in good fun. And all of Washington is getting ready for next week's progress report from Gen. David Petraeus on Iraq. We've drafted Ken Rudin into the fray for our usual visit with the political junkie. Got comments? Post 'em here...

I know it doesn't seem very "public broadcast-y," but I'm a clotheshorse. I devour magazines, I plan outfits in advance, I'm a dedicated Fug reader, and I save almost every piece of clothing -- from the silver pants I wore to clubs in the early '90s, to my prom dresses (one rubber, one sequined, and one I thought was so Ginger Rogers), to my very first -- and last! -- business suit. I am constantly hunting -- my long suffering loved one asked me once when I thought I would be done, and I told him never (his face fell -- some malls are just not built for men). The thing is, I work for public radio, which is more about love then money... I'm simply not going to be able buy those divine red-soled Louboutins, or anything Ms. Stefani's showing at L.A.M.B.. So what's a girl to do? Head for those bright lights -- florescent lights -- of H&M, Delia's, Topshop (well... online at least), and my personal favorite: Forever 21. The clothes are cheap -- in price and construction -- but they can take a trend and spit it out for fifteen bucks faster than Gwen can sue 'em for stealing it. And that, ladies and gents, is our topic today. Knock-offs. Fashion is for everyone -- it's a right, a privilege, and in my opinion, a sign of good citizenship -- but who wants to spend fifteen grand on a bag (it's a sin, for one thing)? So, how does a pattern, a bag, a dress, a trend, make it from the runways to the mall so darn fast? What do you owe the designer who came up with the trend? And if you knew what went into the making of that sweet trapeze dress ... would you forgo it entirely?

Immigrant hands sew much of the clothing produced in the US.

Source: Eduard Chugunov

Well, there's just one problem with all that love for Forever21 (or Forever31)... even if you do think fashion should be more democratic, and not merely the province of the excessively wealthy, how do you think the stores we CAN afford keep their prices so low? According to filmmakers Almudena Carracedo and Robert Bahar, it's because of domestic sweatshops. Hmmm. Suddenly I don't feel so good about that sparkly top I purchased for New Year's Eve... Was it only ten bucks because the person who sewed it (quite well, too -- that was NYE two years ago, and the shirt's still in mint condition) was making less than half that per hour? What do you think? Do low prices on garments always mean sweat shop labor got them to the shelves? Do you think about that when you pick up a pack of undershirts or browse at the mall? And is there any way to buy ethically... AND economically?

Here's what's coming up for your listening ears today:

In our first hour, we'll talk about the life and legacy of Condoleezza Rice with Glenn Kessler, diplomatic correspondent for the Washington Post. According to Kessler, Secretary Rice's new brand of diplomacy has not met with much success. His new book, entitled "The Confidante: Condoleezza Rice and the Creation of the Bush Legacy," chronicles her service as Secretary of State, and previously as National Security Advisor. We'll continue our walk through the world of politics with our political editor Ken Rudin. Today's Political Junkie segment centers around Larry Craig's answering machine faux pas, Fred Thompson's upcoming late night announcement, and the White House's PR campaign for next week's progress report on Iraq.

In hour two, we'll talk about fashion most of us can actually afford. Counterfeit fashion is racking up big business (sorry for that pun!). But where is the line drawn between inspiration and theft? In keeping with the clothing theme, director Almudena Carracedo will talk about her new PBS documentary for P.O.V., "Made in L.A." that takes us inside Los Angeles' garment industry through the eyes of three Latina immigrants fighting for basic labor law protection.

You can leave your comments in the individual show posts. And enjoy the show.

What's left of the Tallgrass Prairie.

Source: BarrieJH

I've been on the East Coast my whole life: raised in Boston, steadily moving down I-95. But this Labor Day I spent in Kansas, visiting the family home of my significant other (he's a native Kansan). There's lots to love about Kansas: wide, open spaces, rolling hills, "amber waves of grain." The East Coast is so crowded... something I was never quite so aware of until I saw Kansas' wide, expansive fields and prairies, interspersed with small towns and sprinkled with grain elevators, silos, and public schools. It was refreshing. I ate barbecue (albeit in Missouri), saw where KU plays, and... shot a .22. It's interesting, because growing up in Boston, guns aren't around -- if they are, it's on the front page and usually linked with tragedy. But out in the middle of the country, it was oddly fun to take aim at a target (a soda can, don't worry), and try to knock it off the fence. It turns out that Easterners aren't good shots (with the possible exception of transplant John Brown), or maybe it's just me. But my trip to the Sunflower State knocked one thing off my life list -- shoot a gun. I always wanted to do it once, just to understand, what it felt like. It turns out for me, that it doesn't feel much different then archery practice -- and I'm still a terrible shot.

By this time next week, we'll know what General Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker have to say to Congress - their testimony begins on Monday, September 10th, before a joint meeting of the House Armed Services and Foreign Relations Committees. The next day, they appear before the counterpart committees in the Senate (I just came out of a meeting to plan coverage - what do we carry live, do we offer a produced, one hour "wrap" of the days events in the evening... how do we co-ordinate coverage with other shows, etc).
But at least the outlines of the presentations to Congress and the formal report required by September 15th are already clear - the General and the administration will argue that there's been some important success militarily, and that while political progress may not be all we might hope, it would be foolish to risk hard-won gains by starting to withdraw American forces and redefining the US role in Iraq. Critics, of course, will focus on the lack of political progress - wasn't the point of the effort to provide a breathing space for politics to move ahead? - on the ephemeral nature of reported military gains, the continued, bloody toll on all sides, the enormous expense, and the opinion polls.
Today, we'll try to answer your questions a week ahead of the testimony - our guests are Jack Keane, a retired four star general and an adviser to General Petraeus, and military expert Anthony Cordesman, an independent analyst who's been critical of administration policy.
Whether you're a skeptic, a believer, or just confused, we need your questions - how do we measure progress? How are we doing against al-Qaida in Iraq? How real is the change of heart by Sunni tribes in Anbar province? Is it possible the US is arming and training both sides for a civil war yet to come? Does any of this matter if the Iraqi government is dysfunctional? What about fighting among the Shiia?

This study on the growing diagnoses of bipolar disorder in kids was startling. Doctors treated 40 times as many children in 2003 as they did in 1994. And it wouldn't be outlandish to expect that number has grown even higher in the last several years. Which means bipolar disorder is now more commonly diagnosed in children than clinical depression. There is some debate over what the study means, some researchers argue that more diagnoses is just a result of greater awareness of the problem. But, others believe that bipolar disorder is being overdiagnosed. The truth may lie somewhere in the middle. Dr. John March gave an interview in the New York Times today.

"From a developmental point of view," Dr. March said, "we simply don't know how accurately we can diagnose bipolar disorder or whether those diagnosed at age 5 or 6 or 7 will grow up to be adults with the illness. The label may or may not reflect reality."

We'll talk with one of the doctors involved in the study on the show today. He'll take your questions about what it means. If you're a parent of a child diagnosed as bipolar, what are your thoughts?

One of my colleagues today referred to the estimable Monty Python as "one of the building blocks of a sense of humor." I quite agree. (It's also a helpful tool for learning Latin, and bravery in dueling.) The Brit TV comedy sketch show lives on in countless jokes, rude gestures, silly walks, and of course, the careers of its creators and performers. Michael Palin, who even non MPFCers will remember for his semi-murderous stutter in A Fish Called Wanda, kept a diary -- thank goodness -- of his Python years, which has just been published. It's a must-read for anyone addicted to the goofy silliness of the group -- making today a must-listen as well. Cardinal Ximinez himself will be here today -- so lend us your ears and your fond memories. If you've never seen any Python, watch this.

Every day I walk down the street to or from the Metro station nearest NPR HQ, I pass at least one, but usually many, young gentlemen decked out in the latest fashions, from cap to kicks. While the colors and logos may vary, one thing never does: the pants, be they jeans, shorts, or sweats, are invariably parked south of hip-level... usually WAY south, as in below-the-booty. How on EARTH do they keep them up? It's confounding, and can even be a bit disturbing depending on the choice and condition of undergarments, but should it be illegal? In some communities, it is... Is this about legislating taste, or is this about singling out a fashion particular to a demographic? And do you see it as a first amendment issue?

We're back in full swing and hard at work on today's show. Here's what's happening today:

In our first hour we are joined by (Ret.) General John Keane, former Army acting chief of staff and Anthony Cordesman, military analyst at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Both have recently returned from separate trips to Iraq and will share their thoughts about what's happening in the region. Later in that hour we will talk to Dr. Mark Olfson, professor of clinical psychiatry at New York's Columbia University, who will answer your questions about bipolar disorder. Be sure to send us your questions.

For our second hour we'll talk about The Python Years with British comic Michael Palin. His new book is a decade long collection of diary entries of the members of the comedy group Monty Python. Following that, we'll talk about the "cost" of wearing saggy pants. Lindel Toups, councilman in LaFourche Parish in Lousiana, will talk about his proposed legislation to ban the public display of undergarments that was made into state law last month. We'll end the hour with your emails and blog comments. Now that the dog days of summer are officially over, tell us about how your life changed on this day after Labor Day. Did you cart your kids off to school for the first time? And how bad was that commute this morning?

Leave us your comments!!

It's not my list, but it's a good one!

Source:astrangegirl

I am an obsessive list-maker. My roommate, who is well-aware of my compulsion to write lists for everything, often finds my notes scrawled on the backs of receipts and envelopes. She's much classier than me, so she brings me back post-its and notepads from wherever she travels to indulge my obsession... so now, all over the house you can find a to-do list here on paper that looks like the Alamo, a shopping list on paper from a French museum, or library books tallied on Westin stationery. There's just something so satisfying about crossing each grocery item off as I drop it in my cart, or X-ing out "clean litter box" after completing that odorous task. Once, when browsing through my favorite bookstore six years ago, I happened upon a total oddity -- the first issue of Found magazine, a periodical dedicated to my detritus and that of people like me. Found doesn't only compile lists -- they'll take anything from photos to lists to love letters to homework, so long as the submission was found by someone other than the creator (my eyes were glued to the sidewalk for weeks after I read the magazine -- my best find was a photo of a toddler at a drum set). Found has yielded at least five books, and if the latest round of books from other folks is any indication, the transient jottings of a population are only becoming more popular -- see our show last week on life lists, and add to it the Illegal Art Post-It note project and this book of grocery lists. What makes these little missives we pen to ourselves so appealing to outsiders? What kinds of lists do you make, and do you have little rules for them*?

*Cross-out color should be different than item color, handwriting should be neat, pencils should rarely if ever be used, items need not be completed in order...

My desk is full of post-its (nasty purple ones, but that's an issue I'll take up with our supply company). And not because I'm particularly organized... it's actually the opposite. I'd forget my name if weren't written on my NPR ID. Right now, there's a post-it on my keyboard that says, "General 9AM" to remind me to call Gen. Joseph Hoar this morning. Another note says something about NASA, one about Larry Craig's press conference last week (apparently I also never throw anything out), one that just says "Fri, 27th" that I have no idea what it means. There are more, but you get the idea. I babble all of this because we're talking about memory today, or the lack of it, and if there's any way to get it back. Nintendo, Mattel, online software companies, and I'm sure there are others all have games that claim to exercise your brain. And improve sharpness and memory in the process. I tend to be skeptical of just about any claim like this, but we found people who have tested these games to see if they work, and they'll tell us what they found today. Have you tried any of these games? Do they work?

President Bush's surprise visit to Iraq this morning was focused, primarily, on military strategy and political issues... in both countries. There are other issues whirling around the war, including the question of Iraqi refugees. The State Department once promised to allow 7,000 Iraqis into the United States by the end of this month, but lowered that number to 2,000. So far, reports show anywhere from 190 to around 700 Iraqis have been allowed into the United States. In an op-ed last Friday in the New York Times, retired General Joseph Hoar argued that this is an issue of national security for the United States. The country owes it to the Iraqis who risked their lives to work as translators and in other jobs for the military, he says. Does the US owe Iraqi refugees a path into the country?

It's a tough enough question to answer when it's posed by an adult, but how do you answer it when your six-year-old wants to know what sexy means? Or how do you explain that oldie-but-goodie -- why is the sky blue? If a kid asked me that, I'd probably invent something about unicorns and oceans, but I certainly wouldn't know how to answer it truthfully in grade school vernacular. Author Wendell Jamieson wrote down the zillions of questions spilling out of his son's mouth and got answers from all sorts of real people. What's the weirdest thing your kids have ever asked you? And what are the questions you actually wouldn't want to answer with the whole truth?

It's a provocative question: with the sixth anniversary of 9/11 right around the corner, how much tribute is enough? What's the expiration date for grieving? What's the purpose of public memorials, and who are they for? I couldn't begin to have the answers to all these questions... what do y'all think? And, if you weren't directly affected by a given tragedy, do you even get to have a say?

Well, in spite of the Labor Day holiday's tradition of this being a day of rest, we're hard at work getting the show ready for you. Today, John Donvan has graciously agreed to step in as our guest host. You may know him as a correspondent on ABC's "Nightline." I'm sure he'll do a great job today. (And we've promised to be kind.)

Today's first hour we'll ask the question, "Can you hold on to your memory?" and find out if vide games and online programs that are designed to improve your memory actually work. And how does memory loss differ from absent-mindedness? (Should I be concerned that I found my car keys in the fridge?) At the end of that hour, we'll speak with Ret. General Joseph Hoar on the opinion page. He argues that the United States needs to open its doors to more Iraqi refugees.

In our second hour, author Wendell Jamieson talks about his book, "Father Knows Less or: Can I Cook My Sister?" We'll talk about the baffling questions kids ask, and how much truth you should tell...if you actually KNOW the answer, of course. Has a kid ever stumped you? (And did you answer with a suggested game of catch?) Our second hour ends with a discussion about the upcoming sixth anniversary of the terrorist attacks on September 11th, and the debate over how much tribute is enough.

Enjoy listening. And give that hamburger one more good turn for us!!